When I decided to add a Broomhandle to my collection,
I looked at the various caliber offerings, and eventually settled on
getting a "Red 9" pistol, that is, a C96 that was chambered in the then
"new" 9mm Parabellum cartridge. This particular variation is
also known as the "Prussian Contract", or the "Imperial Army Contract",
and covers the 150,000 C96 Mauser pistols ordered for the German Army
between 1916 and 1918.

I decided on this variant for two main reasons.
Firstly,
9mm ammunition is much more readily available than any of the other
Broomhandle chamberings, should I want to actually "shoot" it. Secondly, a period correct piece with the big red "9" engraved on
the handles just seemed cool to me, and just a little "one off" from the
regular Mausers. The big red 9 is there of course, to denote that this
pistol is chambered in 9mm instead of 7.63 Mauser, a valid concern amongst the
trench dwelling inhabitants of the Kaiser's Imperial forces during the
First World War.

Maybe it's akin to the red hourglass on a Black Widow
spider...but that big, red "9" just seems menacing...

The C96 "Broomhandle" Mauser pistol is one of those
revolutionary firearms that is really unique, and holds a very
significant place in the development of the semi-automatic handgun.
Revolutionary, yes, but essentially an evolutionary dead end. Never the
less, it is a wonderful piece of engineering and workmanship, and still
sports some pretty advanced features over a hundred years after it was
designed by three brothers, Friedrich, Josef and Fidel Feederle.
Marketed by Mauser as "The Mauser Military Pistol", it was, and is a
marvel of early automatic pistol design.

Prussian Army acceptance stamp

It saw service in a number of conflicts, under many different
nationalities, and was quite popular the world over. At one time or
another, it saw service with the likes of Sir Winston Churchill,
Bolshevik Revolutionaries, Chinese Warlords, Viet-Cong guerillas, and
civilian and police entities from Madrid to Singapore. They are still
being encountered in hotspots from Kosovo, to Iraq. A history regrettably
dripping with the blood of conflict spanning a hundred years, and all
across the globe, but a testimony none-the-less to this pistols enduring
popularity.

Various military proofs

The C96 was chambered in three major cartridge types,
7.63x25mm Mauser, 9mm Mauser, and 9mm Parabellum. It is loaded via a 10
round stripper clip into a fixed box magazine forward of the trigger.
The 7.63 Mauser cartridge propels an 85 grain round nosed bullet at
around 1400 feet per second, and was one of the most powerful handgun
rounds in the world prior to the advent of various "magnum" cartridges
such as the .357 magnum.

This particular pistol is a bit rougher, and more worn than
other Broomhandle's I looked at, but then this is a weapon of war.

The Great War...

The War to End All Wars...

Note the N/S on the hammer indicating this pistol is
equipped with the "new safety" (Neues Sicherung).

Also note the matching serial numbers...three in one
area. Wow. Germans have always been thorough.

Says it all doesn't it? No mistake on who made this
one.

Acceptance stamp and serial number on the bolt handle.

500 meter graduated leaf sight. 500 meters with a 9mm,
even with a shoulder stock, is pretty optimistic...Of course, pre-war
C96's were incremented out to 1000 meters. Note remaining blue.

First thing I did was spent 5 minutes taking it
apart...and 2 hours putting it back together!

Complete shoulder stock and harness rig.

I don't want to begin to tell you how much metal
and woodwork I had to do to get this reproduction to fit.

When it arrived, it would not fit on the pistol, and
the pistol wouldn't fit inside it.

God bless the Dremel Moto-Tool(tm)

The Broomhandle is carried inside the stock, which
nestles inside the leather harness.

In addition to the pistol, the harness also holds a
bore cleaning rod, and a spare magazine spring.

The leather harness has belt loops and can be carried
strapped to the leg.

The stock slides into a groove on the back of the
Broomhandle, and "snicks" neatly into place, producing a handy short
barreled carbine. Ultra cool!

Try this with any other pistol other than early
1896 Mausers and certain Artillery Luger's and you'll end up
vacationing in Club Fed. The National Firearms Act specifically
excludes these models as exempt due to historic curio status. All
other "stocked pistols" are considered "short barreled rifles" and
are prohibited or regulated accordingly.

Early morning "natural light" shot

Very cool.

Unfortunatly I sold this example one day, in a moment
of weakness, and it took me a couple years to find a
replacement, which
wasn't quite as nice.